In Facebook Jail Again!

Posting here on my little blog about my recent suspension from Facebook. And yes, I’m still on the naughty list. And why?

Here’s what I posted…”Remember to turn back your scales 10 pounds. Happy Thanksgiving.”

I don’t have the actual screenshot, because that was so vile that they won’t let me use Facebook at all. Oh, the sadness, the horror of it all.

That post went against the safety of the Facebook community standards. Facebook allows, even encourages, quite a bit of stuff that ought to go against any good human’s moral standards. But, one of the things Facebook does not allow, is weight loss claims. I’m not going to jump on my soapbox, because in all honesty, it really amuses me that my tongue in cheek post about turning back the scale 10 pounds for Thanksgiving would trigger Facebook’s sensitive meter.

For a few years now, I have taken 30 day breaks from Facebook during my birthday month. I’ve written about that extensively. At first, it was just an experiment. I think when you have a habit, it’s good to see if you can live without it or not. So, while the suspension from Facebook has created a few hurdles that I have to get around since I relied on it for my health groups and business partner pages, I’m willing to use this time to find a work-around. It might just be a really good opportunity to invest the time I usually spend on Facebook, making my blog work for me.

I have mindlessly tapped the Facebook button a few times in the last 2 days. But, just like when I “suspend” myself from Facebook for 30 days a year, except for the messages that might be piling up, I don’t miss Facebook. I don’t miss it at all.

I don’t miss it because over the last few years, it has become so toxic. The algorithm seems to be tuned to the topics that create the most angst and hatred among it’s users. I personally believe that over the next 5-10 years, Facebook will begin to feel more like a ghost town and we’ll be saying, ‘Remember Facebook?’

I’ve been reading a book on gratitude and one of the “games” is to start the day saying, ‘something amazing is going to happen today.’ And, you know what? I think something did, because I’m realizing that I spend a lot of time scrolling on Facebook. Today, I managed to stay focused long enough to create labels, package my dried sourdough, and take it out to the shop to set it up for the sale tomorrow. I think that’s pretty amazing. The next batch will be for sale here, on my blog. How about that?

It’s also just another reminder, don’t rely on free social media platforms for your business. I’ve been saying it for years. I built the foundation of my coaching business face to face with people, before social media was a thing. That method has kind of gone quiet, as people started harnessing social media for exposure, community, marketing and sales. Even before the lockdowns of 2020, fewer gatherings to discuss starting your own business, were happening live, but over social media or Zoom, instead.

While it is annoying that such an innocuous post would trigger the Facebook suspension ticket, I’m not angry. I think more and more people are learning that Facebook really could go away some day, and this is a good wake up call for all of us. While MySpace wasn’t nearly as popular, it’s a lesson to entrepreneurs; nothing is permanent. I don’t rely on Facebook to run my business, but it has been an easy place to establish and run accountability groups. But, do I really have to have it?

Instagram is owned by Facebook, and I could end up being suspended from there too. Now, that would make me a little sad, because I do have so many sewing, knitting, bread-making, homesteading buddies that I communicate with daily. But, still, if that went away, what would be my net?

A blog. I know blogs are dime a dozen now. And, what you could accomplish in terms of traffic years ago, when blogging was relatively new, just isn’t that simple now. But, at least the chances of being suspended from Squarespace is pretty low.

I wanted to hop in here to let you know what happened, if you are one of my Facebook friends, family, or business team. Most of the people that need or want to get ahold of me, have my email or phone number. Leave a message for me below…send a cake with a file or something. I really don’t know at this point if I will return to Facebook even if they take away the suspension.

Until then, I’ve started a newsletter, I’m still posting on Instagram as @prairiewomanarts and I have a big smile on my face!

Have a great weekend.

Anne Dovel
@prairiewomanarts